Fashion & lifestyle to become Rs 3,94000 crore market by 2020

Indian fashion and lifestyle market is set to grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12% over the next five years to reach Rs 3,94,000 crore from the currently estimated Rs 2,21,000 crore, said an A T Kearney survey on Tuesday.

According to Debashish Mukherjee, head – consumer and retail, A T Kearney India, apparel that constitutes 57.2% pie in the overall market now will grow to 59.9% by 2020 while footwear will see a decline from 34% to 26.1% in the same period.

“Accessories market share that includes apparel accessories, bags, wallets, belts, fashion jewellery, time wear and eyewear would grow from 8.8% to 14% in the next five years,” he said at the two-day India Fashion Forum (IFF) 2016 currently on in Mumbai.

According to Mukherjee, while men’s apparel currently dominates the space, it is the women’s apparel category that is set to grow at a faster rate and will equal the men’s wear segment this year. “The fashion and lifestyle segment is witnessing a paradigm shift with women’s apparel expected to match men’s apparel at par in terms of 37% market share each in 2016. Keeping this trend in mind, the organised retailers need to pay more attention to women consumers as India is one of the few or possibly the only country where the share of men’s apparel is higher than that of women’s and that is changing,” he said.

Capturing the disruption, leading lifestyle players are able to identify the ‘white’ spaces or create new play areas in the market to carve out space for themselves. “Segments like kidswear, ethnic, that were once ‘white’ spaces, are now well penetrated by players like Gini &Jony, FabIndia, Biba, etc,” he said.

While online shopping preference by Indian consumers is clearly seen on the higher side at 62% compared to global consumers at 54%, the same is more in travel, air-ticketing and flash sale, rather than pure play online retailer, said the survey.

Retailers need to customise their brand and product offerings across different regions and city tiers. Their overall strategy for each brand needs to be reflected in the brand assortment choices made at a store level, said the survey.

Connected consumers in India have a clear preference for online shopping, says the survey, adding that this cannot be ignored anymore. While the global percentage (of respondents who prefer to shop online) stands at 54%, India’s share stands at 62%.

The survey also said that there is a strong potential for fashion brands to expand their reach and gain scale in India.

Fashion & lifestyle to become Rs 3,94000 crore market by 2020